Enthralled
by beatress
Summary: 'Cause between the ice and the water, she was the most stunning thing he ever saw in his life… Gruvia!


**Konnichiwa, minna-san! Finally I got some free time so I'm posting this up. I was watching Ginban Kaleidoscope(It's just awesome. If you didn't watch it, you must) and this idea popped into my mind. For now it is a one-shot. But if you want and if I can make, I'll make more of it! Oh and it happens to be Gruvia week… So, I dedicate it to all the Gruvia fans too! Also, no magic involved in this fic.**

**About "Believe me, Juvia", my other Gruvia fic, I would have written that if this didn't pop up. A little refinement for the idea of the next chapter and I'll post it as soon as I'm done with it! Thanks for making it a big success. It's already nearing halfway to century! And it would have been nothing without you all, so Thanks for that!**

**Have a nice time minna!**

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**Enthralled**

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**Setting: AU**

**Summary: 'Cause between the ice and the water, she was the most stunning thing he ever saw in his life… Gruvia!**

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"Bringing you the second round of the Women's figure skating Grand Prix from Oshibana city, Fiore! In the ranking from the short program, we have Jenny Realight from Blue Pegasus, who took the first place after an overwhelming performance. Now we have Magnolia's Juvia Lockser! Will she be able to catch up in the free program?!" the bald headed announcer wearing a strawberry blonde wig announced.

His eyes drifted across the stadium to the tiny figure he saw at the corner. He was sitting in the third line on the opposite side of the stadium from where she was currently standing with her coach. A determined look crossed her face as he saw the lips of the old man flutter. He was standing on the railing to meet up to her height so he could instruct her straight. Makarov Dreyar had been the one of finest coaches available in Magnolia and she, Juvia, had been the best ever figure skater he had known.

He was sitting in his white T-shirt and he was clad in a blue overcoat whose sleeves extended up to his feet. His blue pants made it seem as if his attire was specially chosen for this day, to match the theme "Ice and water".

She was no different. Her blue hair was pulled into a ponytail that crawled down her back. A blue dress hugging her curves extending to her mid thigh, had snowflakes on it. The dress seemed to be a matching set with the raven haired guy whose gaze never left the blue haired beauty. She turned around, catching him red-handed and flashed a smile at him. He yanked his head away, his face turned into all shades of red possible. How stupid was he to get caught off?

"On the ice, we present to you Magnolia's Juvia Lockser!" the announcer made the announcement as the blue haired beauty slid on the crystal white ice to the centre. The stadium erupted in cheers as the Fiore's best figure skater made her move into the rink.

Her eyes were closed trying to concentrate. She slowly raised her right hand to the sky and the music began….

"Yajima-san, the theme for today is Ice and water" the announcer turned to the judge who was a frail old man. He was once the Men's figure skating champion, of course it was in his young age.

"So, I think it's time to reveal the truth behind the theme…" a pumpkin head aided the commentator as he signalled the start of the act.

Her moves were perfect. Her body was on its own dancing to the music being played. This probably couldn't go wrong. He knew about her for the past three years… The passion for the figure skating, the respect for others and the…. Love for him…

His cheeks were painted pink with the last thought as a smile graced his lips watching the beauty dance in front of his eyes. That was one thing he never understood. Why did she love him? She was the Ice queen but he was? A commoner. He wasn't someone so well known. Why did he receive her attention?

She slid on the ice, then doing a double toe followed by a Triple Lutz. She jumped in the air ever so elegantly but slipped as she landed on the ice, gliding on the ice to almost hitting the wall. The crowd fell silent.

"Juvia!" a shout of agony escaped his mouth. That was a dreadful thing.

The raven haired guy heart fell as he saw her fall. How did it happen? Her Triple Lutz was always perfect in all the time he had known her! He couldn't comprehend anything until he realised the floor to be wet. His eyes searched for the source only to find it was raining inside the stadium.

"What the heck-?" he muttered as he stood up in his place. The people sitting beside him muttered curses, for he was blocking their vision. A different feeling in his guts told him to run to her and hold her in his arms. Her eyes were still closed and the impact might have hurt more than it showed. The organisers? How do they manage to get the crazy ideas?!

"Woah, that fall was great! Is it the end of Miss Lockser's program?" the annoying voice of the commentator was heard. Juvia's eyes shot open realising her program was still going on and smiled.

"Maybe, the young lady is fine after all," the old men's figure skating champion said.

"Juvia…" he muttered. He could see the pain behind her smile. Damn it! He had known her better than all. He could read every unreadable expression on her face and the fact that she was still trying to smile made his heart ache.

The floor was still wet with water. So was her dress which clung to her body even more. Her hair laid limply attached to her back and if she would try to stand again, she might end up tearing her ligament. Yet, she tried to stand…. Only to fall again!

"Ouch," a yelp of pain escaped her mouth as her body hit the hard boundary again.

"Juvia!" he shouted, dashing down the stairs. He wanted to rush to her, taking no heed of the security guards running after him. He ran until a short old man stopped him in his tracks.

"Where are you going boy?" he asked as if he hadn't witnessed a single thing that happened.

The raven haired guy glared at the old man, not caring what he was. She was in pain. Can't he see that? He ignored the man as he proceeded forward.

"Stop right there Gray. She wouldn't lose, not before she shows you something she especially planned for you and not to her very own element," the old man said, not at all minding the glares he sent in his direction earlier. "Watch carefully…. Her every move.."

"But master…" Gray protested. He referred to the old man so because he happened to provide him with a job at Fairytail Inc.

"Watch her…." The master repeated and Gray's eyes fell on the girl who claimed her love for him. She was…. STANDING on the wet ice floor!

Gray's eyes were wide with surprise but soon a smile took the surprise. She smiled at him as she earned the same smile from him. Despite the coldness her body was experiencing she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. No way was he smiling at her red face! She turned her face away from him and closed her eyes.

"Looks like Juvia-san's having trouble in facing the theme. Ice and water… dance on the ice while the water falls from the sky. Wow! It's even rhyming! Will Juvia be able to stand to the challenge? Or will she lose the game?" the commentator said. Gray felt like punching straight in his face. What does he think he is doing hurting people like that? He clenched his fist hard, trying to contain the anger in himself until he felt his name being called and his eyes lost them on taking a glimpse of the woman he… Wait! What was he saying? She's just a friend!

"_Gray-sama" _she thought, reminding herself of the images of the raven-haired guy. "_This is for you,"_

She glided on the damp floor, making turns, slipping a little, missing some and sometimes even making Gray shout to her to be careful. She knew she was being reckless but he had to know she was serious about the entire thing. She swirled on the ice floor as if she was the queen of that realm. Wait, she _is_ the Ice queen!

"Don't you see something different about her moves today?" the old man called for his attention. The guy watched intently, taking note of her movements. Her movements… they seemed familiar. Where did he saw them before? He pondered for a while before it struck him. Yes, it was when he met her for the first time. He was so mesmerized by her skating he couldn't explain.

Then she made the Serpent move, drawing his attention to all the time they've spent together. Was this performance really for him?

She jumped up in the air, maybe aiming for a Triple Lutz. Gray's heart fell as he saw her make that move. Was she insane? Why was she doing that? Was that for him? Did she love him… that much? But why? He was just a common guy and she was the best figure skater in Fiore. For her sake, he didn't deserve her damn it!

She landed smoothly, despite a little loss of balance which she regained. She then went for the Serpent move. Then she slashed through the rain making an eight on the floor. The music was slowly fading and she knew she had to compensate for all the time she fell. Possibly, there was only one thing that could reserve a 1% chance of victory for her, if any. That was…

Gray saw the maiden dance within the ice. His jaw fell agape. His eyes were wide. Is it only now or was she always this… _beautiful_? _**'Cause between the ice and the water, she was the most stunning thing he ever saw in his life. **_

Heat crept up to his cheeks but he made no attempt to stop it. It didn't matter now. She wasn't figure skating. He can see that. He had known her for years now and he can tell the difference. She didn't care about the price, for she only wanted to show her feelings to him- the ones which he failed to reflect for her until then.

Soon fear engulfed him as he saw her heading for a triple-triple. He was shocked. It was beyond words for him to express. She hit it perfect, standing in the centre and raising her both hands to the sky in all her elegance. The whole stadium erupted in cheers and applause. There was a standing ovation but he couldn't care less. All he did was sulk and look away from her as she glided to the duo.

"Good job, Juvia," the coach praised her handing her a towel to wipe herself.

"Sure. Cannot be losing to my favourite element, can I?" she chirped and turned her attention to the guy sulking in the corner.

"Gray-sama~" she called out to him in a sing song voice. He refused to look at her but she smiled, knowing he was watching her all the time.

"Juvia's glad you came to watch," she said, before slowly falling to her knees.

"Juvia!" Gray heard the old man shout. He turned around only to find the blue-haired beauty fall on the ground, almost about to lose consciousness. Good God! He caught her in time before she could hit the ground.

"Take her to the infirmary!" the old man yelled at some guards or whoever it was. The raven head couldn't care less about the world now. His only concern was the girl in his arms and he hoped she was safe and sound.

~0~

She slowly opened her deep blue eyes only to meet with a pair of deep blue eyes filled with worry. She blinked once before acknowledging the presence of the raven head with whose eyes she made a contact as soon as he opened hers. He shifted back from watching over her to his seat beside the bed she lay on.

"Gray-sama…" she muttered, watching the guy yank his head away from her in anger. Her eyes found the ground interesting before this thought was incorporated in her brain. Was he waiting for her all this time?

A blush made its way to paint her cheeks as she muttered an "Arigatou". Silence filled between the two, partly because one didn't know what to say and the other was too angry to say anything. The tension in the air was making it difficult for the either of them to breathe.

"So, what happened to the competition?" Juvia decided to break the silence. Little did she know it was the wrong question to start with…

"The other contestants could barely stand on the floor. So, the result is obvious, isn't it?" he flashed a smile through the frown.

"Oh?" she responded, not exactly knowing how to respond. It was good to know that she won but it also seemed that he was still angry with her for an unknown reason.

"That was reckless!" he growled at her, making the poor girl flinch. "What were you doing back there?"

Tears rose to the blue beauty's eyes as she heard him snap at her.

"Juvia wanted to show you my feelings for you. Juvia didn't want Gray-sama to leave for the other town. Juvia wanted Gray-sama to stay with her… But it seems, Juvia's feelings didn't reach you!" she closed her eyes, not wanting to think about him leaving her. Just a few days back, he was promoted and had to move to another city for the job's sake. She just couldn't bear the idea of losing him.

She expected him to yell at her or leave her alone but what happened was the least expected.

She felt warm arms pull her into an embrace and he rested his chin on her head. She instinctively clenched on his shirt, pulling him even closer and releasing her tears into his chest.

"But if you scare me like this…. I feel like going away from you more… especially when I am the reason for your wounds…" he said, running his hands through her hair.

She was taken aback by his words. Her eyes remained wide and red tinted her cheeks furiously.

He pulled back and looked at her red face.

"So-o, d-does that mean, my feelings reached Gray-sama?" she asked, her eye shining with a new hope.

He turned away, letting his back face her. If he hadn't, he would have been ridiculed for his face which turned different shades of red as if it was programmed by an expert in animation. He ran a hand through his own hair. It looks like he went through a lot of debating himself.

She recollected the time she saw him at the rink. He was furious with her. She heard his shout from the stands when she fell. He was damn worried about her. Maybe, though she may not get an answer from him, her feelings might have reached him…. Might have…

She erupted in giggles as he scowled at her.

"What's with the giggles?" he asked, annoyed.

"Gomen…" she stifled her giggles. "I love you, Gray-sama…."

Heat crept to his cheeks though it was a cliché to hear that from her every day.

"Yeah, yeah… I know that already!" he said, walking out of the room, muttering how annoying she was becoming these days but only got giggles as answer.

The door closed behind him and he leaned his back on it. He composed himself before his lips stretched into a smile.

"_Maybe, I'm falling for you too…"_ he thought before leaving the place.

~0~

She couldn't stop herself from the giggles any longer. She knew that was quite irritating but she couldn't help it after having a glimpse of his flustered face. She saw the door close and somehow a it ached a little but soon the pain was gone as she felt a blush forming on her face for some mysterious reason.

But she was sure about one thing. From the events of today, maybe, he's taking a liking to her!

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